I'm doing bidirectional science popularization in American comics

Depp was somewhat bewildered as he watched the hem of his shirt flutter in the wind.

Gu Yi said with a smile, "Congratulations on passing the training again."

Seeing this, Depp showed no joy at passing the test; instead, he said somewhat dejectedly, "But in reality, my attack didn't affect the teacher's robe at all. As agreed, I still haven't passed the test."

Upon hearing this, the Ancient One smiled helplessly, then gave Depp a sharp rap on the forehead and said:

"Don't be modest. Do you know that what you just did almost killed me? If I hadn't cast six layers of magic shield, you might never have seen your teacher again!"

"what?"

Depp raised a questioning voice.

He immediately realized that after the explosion broke through the wall of fire, the Ancient One, who was at the center of the explosion, suffered the most severe damage.

Therefore, the original first layer of magical shield did not actually withstand the full damage from the explosion.

The Ancient One created six more layers of magical shields afterward, which allowed her to remain unharmed at the center of the explosion.

Although a mere six layers of shields were nothing more than a flick of the wrist for the Ancient One.

But this also means that Depp has indeed passed this training.

In a great mood, Depp thought to himself, "Teacher, even if you really die, I can still meet you again."

After all, in the comics, the deceased Ancient One became a spirit and became the messenger of the creator god "Eternity".

Not to mention, the Ancient One hasn't met Strange yet, so she won't die easily.

"By the way, were you trying to kill me with that kind of explosion you just created?"

"The Ancient One grabbed Depp's ear and said."

"Of course not, I just thought this might be a way to break through the fire wall." Depp tilted his head and grinned as he said, "But wasn't my performance great this time? Not only did I combine my own abilities, but I even borrowed the teacher's fire."

"How did you come up with these ideas?" Gu Yi released her hand and said, "Although these are very basic facts, they are the simplest and most fundamental things that people tend to overlook."

Depp felt that the Ancient One in this world seemed somewhat eccentric and childish in personality, not so calm and unfathomable.

However, thinking about certain scenes cut from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Depp suddenly felt that perhaps this was the real Ancient One.

An old rascal who has lived for over seven hundred years.

“Because I saw the explosion above the fire wall,” Depp explained. “I immediately realized that it was because the Thunder Dragon I created initially decomposed the surrounding acid rain, electrolyzing it into hydrogen and oxygen, which then exploded under high temperatures.”

"Then, I immediately thought, if I remove the useless impurities from a large amount of seawater, purify it into a mixture of pure water and dilute sulfuric acid, and then electrolyze it, could I produce a larger-scale explosion?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Yi interrupted, "Electrolyzing seawater would not only cause it to decompose prematurely and become ineffective against the fire wall, but it would also consume a large amount of energy contained in the lightning. This seems... not worthwhile."

“That’s right! That’s why I didn’t have the Sea Dragon and Thunder Dragon fuse and electrolyze at first,” Depp said. “Instead, I had them entangle each other and attack the wall of fire. The moment the Sea Dragon attacked the wall of fire and was evaporated, the Thunder Dragon behind it would start electrolyzing the steam that had just begun to rise.”

"When the Sea Dragon and Thunder Dragon completely dissipated, a huge amount of hydrogen and oxygen produced by the decomposition of seawater had already accumulated around the wall of fire."

"Then... Boom! With the help of the teacher's flames, they exploded instantly."

"However... I didn't expect the explosion to be so powerful."

[This is purely the author's imagination and has no real scientific basis. Just read it for fun.]

"When you created the sea dragon tens of thousands of meters tall, you should have already calculated the power of the explosion," the Ancient One said calmly. "Otherwise, why did you happen to be outside the range of the blast wave?"

Upon hearing this, Depp scratched his head awkwardly, ultimately failing to fool anyone.

However, the Ancient One didn't blame Depp. Instead, she praised him, saying, "Even I couldn't have thought of such an attack method. Although it's just very simple chemical knowledge, many people may know it in their minds, but they simply can't think of how to apply it. I must say, you're amazing, really amazing."

A little embarrassed by the praise, Depp blushed slightly and said, "I just happened to think of it. By the way, what are we going to practice next?"

These two rounds of training with the Ancient One have made Depp more refined and adept at using heat rays and his ability to control water and weather.

Compared to before, Depp's total energy value remained the same, but with more precise control, his combat power increased by more than tenfold.

This made Depp ecstatic. In any case, the only way to survive in a place like American comics where big events happen all the time is to become stronger.

Therefore, Depp is now very much looking forward to the next step of the Ancient One's training.

Is it strength? Or speed?

Or perhaps the ability to fly?

Whatever it may be, Depp is excited about the upcoming training.

Gu Yi stroked his chin and said, "Next, I will train you to control your own power. Your physical strength is quite formidable right now, but if you can't make sufficiently subtle controls over this power, you can't be considered truly powerful."

As the Ancient One spoke, the scenery around them flickered and changed once again.

Depp discovered that he had left the sea and arrived at a rocky ridge.

This seems to be another planet.

Everywhere you look here are mountains and giant rocks.

Strangely, there are neither rivers nor flowers, trees, or grass here.

As for life, there was absolutely no sign of it.

“Strength?” Depp said excitedly. “I must say, teacher, that’s exactly what I want to train.”

"Of course I know."

As Gu Yi spoke, a golden dagger created by magic appeared out of thin air in her hand.

Holding the dagger, she lightly slid it across the nearby boulder, and a triangular blue stone landed in Gu Yi's hand.

Then, Gu Yi pressed the stone in her hand onto the ridge at her feet.

Surprisingly, the triangular stone vanished into thin air the instant it touched the rock beneath their feet.

Where did the triangular stone go?

"Depp asked."

Gu Yi stood up, put his hands behind his back, and said:

“I’ve placed it in the center of this ridge. With your X-ray vision, you should be able to see it.”

Upon hearing this, Depp used his X-ray vision to look at the ridge below and immediately discovered that the triangular rock from before had indeed been stuffed into the center of the ridge by Depp.

Ancient One continued:

“Now, I need you to smash this entire ridge to dust with one punch, but you can’t let the rocks in the middle be damaged in the slightest.”

"There are plenty of rocks and mountains here. We can try many times until you can perfectly control your power."

"What!" Depp exclaimed in disbelief, "How is this possible?"

If Depp were to punch the ridge beneath his feet into dust, it would be very easy for him, posing no difficulty whatsoever.

Depp was struggling to break the ridge without damaging the rocks in the middle.

After all, the power in a fist doesn't go astray once it's unleashed.

Chapter 306 The Feast

On the ridge, Depp's arm muscles were taut, making his sleeves bulge.

No matter how unimaginable the Ancient One's request may be, I must try it first.

Without hesitation, Depp slammed his fist down into the ground.

The next moment, the mountains collapsed and the earth cracked.

The entire ridge split open from the spot where Depp's fist was, and huge cracks instantly covered the entire ridge, dividing the mountain into countless pieces.

Then, these shattered rocks shook again, breaking into tiny fragments the size of fingernails.

With a single punch, Depp shattered the entire rocky mountain.

Even the Ancient One was slightly alarmed by this power.

"Depp's strength seems to have increased quite a bit since the last time we met."

Gu Yi then looked at the center of the rocky mountain. The triangular rock that was originally hidden there had turned into rubble along with the collapse of the entire mountain.

"So it really failed after all?"

Depp looked at the shattered rock mountain and murmured, "How exactly should one exert force to shatter the mountain without damaging the rocks inside?"

Just as Depp was struggling with his decision, a green light flashed beside him.

Depp turned his head and saw the Eye of Agamotto on the Ancient One's chest, flashing incessantly.

At this moment, the Ancient One's bald head, combined with the Time Stone flashing on her chest, made her look like an Ultraman about to finish her transformation.

Depp was even a little scared that the Ancient One might suddenly ask him that classic line.

"Do you believe in light?"

The Ancient One, unaware of Depp's thoughts, frowned slightly after noticing the Time Stone flashing incessantly, and then said:

"Perhaps our training is coming to an end."

Upon hearing this, Depp looked at the Time Stone and asked, "Is it because of this?"

Gu nodded and said, "It's been a week already. Time has stopped for so long, and we've reached the limit of the Time Stone."

"It's been a week already?" Depp exclaimed in surprise. "It seems that the Time Stone not only stopped time, but also affected the perception of time in those who were not stopped."

“You’re right, so this training should be over for now.” Ancient One said after forming hand seals on the Eye of Agamotto, “You said you have other things to do, so let’s talk about strength training next time you come here.”

As the Ancient One channeled her power, the Eye of Agamotto spun and opened once more, revealing the Time Stone within.

As the seal was broken, the green light on the Time Stone intensified several times over.

A dazzling green light enveloped the Ancient One and Depp once again, bathing them completely in its glow.

The next moment, the Ancient One and Depp returned to the sorcerer's sanctuary in Kamar-Taj.

The wind and snow on the Himalayas blew on Depp's face, also dispelling the slight melancholy he felt because he couldn't continue training.

Furthermore, Depp astutely noticed that the Ancient One looked exhausted after returning to Kamar-Taj.

The once vibrant yellow skin was now shrouded in a dark gray shadow.

Clearly, the source of this fatigue was not Depp's attacks, but rather the overuse of the Time Stone's power.

After all, stopping time in the entire world is no ordinary ability; it consumes far more energy than allowing oneself to travel through time alone to explore the past and future of the universe.